Implementation of a Preventive Diabetic Foot Care Program for Patients at Risk of Diabetic Foot

This study aims to evaluate the effect of a preventive diabetic foot care program on the knowledge, behavior, self-management, and glycemic control levels of type 2 diabetic patients at risk of diabetic foot. The development of a Preventive Diabetic Foot Care Program (DiaFOOTCare) for patients with type 2 diabetes at risk of diabetic foot is expected to make a significant contribution to preventing diabetic foot formation. The DiaFOOTCare program consists of two stages. In the first phase, a comprehensive, multi-component, and evidence-based preventive diabetic foot care program will be designed specifically for type 2 diabetic patients at risk of diabetic foot. The internal validity of the program will be tested through expert evaluations by specialists in diabetic foot care, assessments using readability formulas, and pre-application testing with patients identified as being at risk of diabetic foot. As part of the final implementation of the first phase, all interventions included in the DiaFOOTCare protocol will be administered to four patients with diabetic foot risk over a three-week period. Following this, the DiaFOOTCare protocol will be evaluated based on the feedback provided by these four pre-application participants. In the second phase, a randomized controlled trial (RCT) with a single-blinded and active control group design will be conducted at the Akdeniz University Hospital Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases Outpatient Clinic. A group of patients with type 2 diabetes and diabetic foot risk will be identified, and pre-tests will be administered. The patients will then be randomly assigned to the intervention group (n=39) and the control group (n=39). The effectiveness of the DiaFOOTCare program will be assessed through post-tests.